How to spot fake Mitutoyo calipers

[HwAoRrDk]

Very interesting video about fake Mitutoyo digital calipers.



It's a mystery to me how whoever is producing these fakes fails to notice or get right some of the most basic things - like black stripes on the packaging versus grey? I mean I can understand that perhaps a native Chinese speaker might not understand the nuances of latin typography (kerning, proportions, etc.), but basic shapes and colours?

He says that there's nothing particularly wrong with these fakes (apart from the higher power consumption and lower battery life) functionality- or quality-wise in terms of their ability to do the job, but at the end of the day, if you're happy with these things, you might as well be buying a no-name brand for a lower price, rather than a fake that is overpriced for what it is.

[voltsandjolts]

Which reminds me, this week in Lidl UK there are quite decent digital calipers for £9.99.

[MarkF]

'Big Clive' did a teardown of cheap carbon fiber eBay calipers for £5.
Apparently, they are not too bad.  It looks like they can still be found.

   

[ataradov]

This is not "decent". This is a typical Chinese junk. There are hundreds of those sold under various names, but they all are universally bad.

iGaging  Absolute Origin are much cheaper compared to Mitutoyo, but they have very similar feel and performance.

The carbon ones are really good for what they are. I have a pair of those for quick measurement. Their accuracy is usually good enough for electronics-related stuff. I would not use them as the main tool though.

[thm_w]

This is not "decent". This is a typical Chinese junk. There are hundreds of those sold under various names, but they all are universally bad.

In what way? They are very accurate and some are smooth and work well. Only downside is the short battery life (<1 year on SR44). I've used 4 of the cheapies.
For $15 I think its a fair deal.
For $70 or whatever people are paying for a few pieces of paper that say "Mitutoyo" of course its a rip off

iGaging  Absolute Origin are much cheaper compared to Mitutoyo, but they have very similar feel and performance.

Yes igaging is one of the best calipers for the money once you go above the $15 mark. $40 is well worth it if you use your calipers more than a few times a year.
https://www.igagingstore.com/6-Digital-Caliper-ABSOLUTE-ORIGIN-Digital-IP54-Ex-p/205450.htm

[ataradov]

some are smooth

And others are full of machining dust and scratchy out of the box. And there is no way to guess in advance. They also lose count on rapid movement.

You can get used to them and after some cleanup they may even feel fine. I used those cheap calipers for a long time. That is until I held real Mitutoyo and iGaging calipers. And I'm never going back.

But I'm also not going to Mitutoyo. There is no functional difference between Mitutoyo and iGaging. In some cases you may need some traceability or certifications requirements, of course. But if you just need a tool, go with iGaging.

For $15 I think its a good deal.

It is a standard price for those cheap calipers. It is not a good deal, it is a standard deal for them. 6" iGaging calipers are $42 on Amazon and the price difference totally worth it, IMO.

[thm_w]

And others are full of machining dust and scratchy out of the box. And there is no way to guess in advance. They also lose count on rapid movement.

You can get used to them and after some cleanup they may even feel fine. I used those cheap calipers for a long time. That is until I held real Mitutoyo and iGaging calipers. And I'm never going back.

But I'm also not going to Mitutoyo. There is no functional difference between Mitutoyo and iGaging. In some cases you may need some traceability or certifications requirements, of course. But if you just need a tool, go with iGaging.

Sure, thats what Amazon or buying in store is for, you try them in store. I wouldn't buy a pair for $15 on ebay/Ali unless the store was highly rated, as there is no way to return them.

It is a standard price for those cheap calipers. It is not a good deal, it is a standard deal for them. 6" iGaging calipers are $42 on Amazon and the price difference totally worth it, IMO.

Yeah I edited from good to fair, to agree with you, $40 was cheaper than I remembered.
Yes the price difference is worth it for us.

[beanflying]

James is a !@#$tard and made me go out and buy a secondhand set of 'real' 8" used (because I am poor) Mitutoyo Calipers two hours after his video dropped. Might also be because I am really really weak when casually trawling evilbay too 

Price on these BTW was the same price as the new Fake ones.

[Muttley Snickers]

There have been a few threads on the forum where fake Mitutoyo calipers have been discussed. Mitutoyo themselves once released a document intended to help identify the fakes from the real thing. I posted a copy of it in an older thread but they may have put out an updated one since then.

https://www.eevblog.com/forum/reviews/nice-mitutoyo-calipers-that-were-on-sale/msg610521/#msg610521

[aeberbach]

I have fake 150mm Mitutoyo calipers. They worked really well for about three years during which time I never knew they were fake; bought from Amazon first party, not suspiciously cheap, worked smoothly and seemed accurate. As it was my first calipers I should have known that they should turn off automatically and these did not.

It's actually confusing watching that video. By some measures mine appear genuine (case details, paperwork quality, battery supplied, battery compartment, printing), on others it matches the fakes (depth rod mill, no dashes on battery insert, recessed origin button). I think it is possibly just a superior fake compared to what's out there now.

Now I have 300mm "Neiko" calipers. Just as smooth, not pretending to be anything else, turn off automatically. Almost certainly the same as the Shars calipers as mentioned in the video.

[eugene]

I should have known that they should turn off automatically and these did not.

None of the Mitutoyo digital calipers that I have used turned off automatically. I have assumed they are all genuine. Certainly at least some of them are.

[Jester]

I have watched a few fake Mitutoyo videos, the C42 version is more detailed than the others. IMO The most important aspects pointed out, because they can be verified from online images:
1) the machining of the fixed jaw
2) the non parallel lines on the outer envelope

I guess we will have to wait and see how long it takes them to correct those?

[langwadt]

I have watched a few fake Mitutoyo videos, the C42 version is more detailed than the others. IMO The most important aspects pointed out, because they can be verified from online images:
1) the machining of the fixed jaw
2) the non parallel lines on the outer envelope

even from the thumbnail it is very clear that the color of the display is very different on the fakes, but if buying online who knows if they use pictures from Mitutoyo and not pictures of what they are selling

[aeberbach]

I should have known that they should turn off automatically and these did not.

None of the Mitutoyo digital calipers that I have used turned off automatically. I have assumed they are all genuine. Certainly at least some of them are.

Maybe I saw a fake vs. real video from a guy that had two different kinds of fake and just thought he finally had a real one because it was different

[ataradov]

I don't think my iGaging ones turn off either, at least not within a few hours. They may turn off after a day or two.

Their power consumption is not that different in an off state, and I can see how it would be annoying to constantly turn them on in a professional setting. I hate that my multimeters turn off by default. If I could increase turn off time to 8 hours or so, I'd be really happy.

[xavier60]

My igauging OriginCal calipers will stay on indefinitely. I'd like to think that it doesn't affect the battery life by much.

[exmadscientist]

I should have known that they should turn off automatically and these did not.

None of the Mitutoyo digital calipers that I have used turned off automatically. I have assumed they are all genuine. Certainly at least some of them are.

The "standard" models (500-196-30 and friends) do not shut off automatically. The "harsh environment" IP67 models (500-753-20 etc.) do. The solar models obviously do not ever intentionally turn off, but you don't want them because they're generally annoying to use (any button presses lock up the stupid things for ~10sec).

[jonpaul]

Bonjour, for $5 we found a mint genuine  Fowler caliper, at a street or garage sale, plastic not metal but accurate, mm/in/ft. and has interface connector.

https://www.fowlerprecision.com/6-150mm-Xtra-Value-Cal-Electronic-Caliper-with-Regular-Display-54-101-150-2

Bon Chance!

Jon

[beanflying]

This one popped back up in my YouTube feed today from around a year ago from James and goes to the other part not mentioned in the real vs fake Mitutoyo one are they cheap ones any good?

I have had 3 pairs of cheapies (always metal jaws) over the years and two of them are still in good working order. Accuracy wise they stack up well in general against known standards and my Mitutoyo outside Micrometers. All Verniers digital or mechanical are at best a 'good' approximation of a measurement rather than an absolute.

[HighVoltage]

I sometimes have to measure magnets and use a cheap plastic jaw caliper.

Are there any good quality calipers that are made of none magnetic steel?
Or what do people use that have to measure strong magnets?

 

[SeanB]

Funny most of mine are non digital, simply because I got used older ones, and they work for me well.  Batteries not needed, and for my use perfect, though having a 1m caliper is something I rarely use.

For magnetic material use either plastic, carbon fibre or get the stainless steel non magnetic versions, though you also can use the intrinsically safe versions, at an eye watering price, that are made from Beryllium copper and alubronze.

[beanflying]

I sometimes have to measure magnets and use a cheap plastic jaw caliper.

Are there any good quality calipers that are made of none magnetic steel?
Or what do people use that have to measure strong magnets?

There is a bunch of commercial extended jaws available for verniers some for brake calipers like below or the centre to centre ones for hole spacings. Or roll your own out of Brass/Aluminium or similar would work. Mitutoyo make a set of Carbon Jawed ones too but unless you have a spare kidney to sell best you don't ask the price 

[thm_w]

This one popped back up in my YouTube feed today from around a year ago from James and goes to the other part not mentioned in the real vs fake Mitutoyo one are they cheap ones any good?

I have had 3 pairs of cheapies (always metal jaws) over the years and two of them are still in good working order. Accuracy wise they stack up well in general against known standards and my Mitutoyo outside Micrometers. All Verniers digital or mechanical are at best a 'good' approximation of a measurement rather than an absolute.

He said they test OK.

If you are measuring and uncertainty of +/- 0.0015" is good enough then calipers are a perfectly fine "absolute" measurement.
If you need something more accurate, then of course you can't use them.

[xavier60]

My igauging OriginCal calipers will stay on indefinitely. I'd like to think that it doesn't affect the battery life by much.

I measured 6.6uA while on. The current gradually drops after it's switched off. I stopped measuring when it got down to 0.05 uA after a few minutes. 
It has a CR2032 cell.

[HighVoltage]

I sometimes have to measure magnets and use a cheap plastic jaw caliper.

Are there any good quality calipers that are made of none magnetic steel?
Or what do people use that have to measure strong magnets?

There is a bunch of commercial extended jaws available for verniers some for brake calipers like below or the centre to centre ones for hole spacings. Or roll your own out of Brass/Aluminium or similar would work. Mitutoyo make a set of Carbon Jawed ones too but unless you have a spare kidney to sell best you don't ask the price 

Yes, the Mitutoyo is crazy expensive!

I ordered a cheap China made stainless steel caliper.
Let's see how good that one is.
Probably good enough to measure magnets to 1/10 of a mm